Steam irons are well known as providing a clothes smoothing device comprising a water reservoir within the iron body and comprising a heated sole plate having a surface for contacting clothing. Water may be heated by the sole plate or a separate heater to create steam that can be continuously delivered through holes of the sole plate or may be controlled to be delivered as a response to activation by a trigger or the like or as a result of certain sensed conditions.
More recently, steam generators have been developed that utilize an iron as such is provided with a heated sole plate but without a water reservoir, wherein the iron is connected with a steam generation base unit that includes a water reservoir and a heating device for creating steam. The steam and usually electrical power are delivered to the iron by way of a steam conduit and electrical wires that are provided within a flexible hose that allows the iron to be manipulated independently of the base unit.
Typically, the steam generation base unit and iron device are also physically connectable to each other, such as by a latching mechanism of a mechanical type. The iron is also then releasable from the base unit by unlatching of the mechanism for use. The iron itself of such a steam generator is typically designed like a conventional iron having a handle portion to allow manipulation of the iron, in particular its sole plate, for steaming and pressing clothing or the like. As compared with a conventional iron, a stream generator can produce a much greater quantity of steam over longer time since the steam is generated within the base unit, which is typically larger than an iron and includes a bigger water reservoir and more powerful steam generator.
A water reservoir of a steam generator is typically provided so as to be refillable with water either by providing an access to the reservoir as positioned within the steam generator or by providing a removable reservoir. Either way, the reservoir is sized and shaped to hold a sufficient quantity of water based upon the needs for typical usage. The larger the steam generator, the greater the potential for water capacity of the water reservoir, and the greater the weight of the unit itself. A competing desire is to keep the steam generator unit portable. Water as provided within a water reservoir also adds very significantly to the weight of the unit.
Prior art steam generators typically rely on the handle of the iron as such is already a necessity so as to permit manipulation of the iron during usage for steaming and/or pressing a garment or the like. This is possible by including a latching mechanism, as noted above, that can selectively lock the iron and steam generation base unit together so that they are portable together. The iron handle thus permits the base unit to move with the iron when they are locked together.